Risk factors for breast cancer in patients with benign breast diseases: a 10-year observational study

Aim. To assess risk factors for breast cancer in a large population of women with benign breast dysplasia (BBD) followed up for a long time.
Materials and methods. This retrospective study included 504 women with BBD followed up for 10 years. Study participants were divided into two groups: 1) BBD patients who did not develop breast cancer within 10 years (n = 261); 2) BBD patients who developed breast cancer within 10 years (n = 243). We conducted comprehensive retrospective analysis of demographic, clinical, and laboratory characteristics, as well as treatment details for BBD. Patient age varied between 39 and 49 years. The ten-year follow-up interval was chosen to perform adequate comparison of the groups. The differences were considered significant at p <0.05.
Results. The main difference between the two groups was related to conservative treatment for BBD and its duration. Almost all (93.4 %) patients in the group without breast cancer received some conservative treatment for BBD for 78.0 ± 1.7 months, whereas among those who developed breast cancer, only 37.4 % received conservative therapy for 15.0 ± 0.8 months (p <0.001). Other significant risk factors for breast cancer in group 2 included obesity, gynecological pathology, long-term stress, and no surgical treatment for benign breast changes (p <0.001). The analysis of laboratory parameters demonstrated significantly higher levels of prolactin in patients who developed breast cancer (31 % versus 13 %; p <0.001).
Conclusion. Potential risk factors for breast cancer in BBD patients include overweight, benign gynecological diseases, elevated prolactin, and long-term stress. Timely diagnosis and treatment of BBD and elimination of the abovementioned factors can significantly reduce the probability of breast cancer.

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